Over $103.6 million sent to artisans so far!

Passport Club

Yuni Kristina

Video

Yuni Kristina

Silk batik shawls and scarves in Bali and Java

"My mother is my inspiration. She and I still design together, especially the floral and bird motifs that are typical in Pekalongan batik."

Update (August, 2019)

I'm Yuni Kristina and I was born in 1983 in Pekalongan, Central Java. As part of Pekalongan regency, Wonokerto is known as the 'World's City of Batik,' people in here also create batik. Most homemakers in my town make batik, from small productions to large ones. There are stamped batiks and hand-painted batiks — all are available. Besides being known as Batik City, Pekalongan is also known as the 'Fisherman City.' Most of the men work as fishermen. My father also was a fisherman and my mother as a batik maker. As a fisherman, my father could be gone anywhere from a month to six months. It all depended on how much fish he could catch.

I started working in this field when I was 16 years old. After school, I helped my mother in making batik. She taught me how to hold the canting tool, and how to draw on cotton or silk. I love making batik because it has so many motifs that can be explored. To make batik, one also needs patience and extraordinary skill.

Even though now my life seems good and I can provide for my children, I used to work very hard when I was a teenager. When I graduated from senior high school, I had to work in two places. From 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., I worked for a phone seller and after that, from 4:30 to 9:30 p.m., I worked at a motorcycle counter in a shopping mall. I did that for six years because I needed to support my father, since he was very sick at that time.

Now, I am married to my lovely husband, Pande Putu Riecky Surya and together, we are blessed with a daughter and two sons. Our children are the best thing that ever happened to me. And they give us new spirit to work harder. My husband and I always give our best to give them a great education, so they can have a bright future. We hope that they will be humble people, and they can make a good impact on society.

When I had just started my batik workshop, a lot of people underestimated my skill. Yet, by the time I could prove they were wrong, people started to recognize my designs. I have made a lot of batik scarves and shawls, but my best and most challenging one is the ‘Wine Garden' shawl. The reason is because it uses two methods to make it beautiful. First, I do batik on silk, and then I draw flowers so the product is really colorful. The silk and cotton in my scarves are usually ones that I have picked. Then I give them to my helpers — I have 20 helpers, six men and fourteen women. My husband and I coordinate everything. I'm really proud to be a batik maker because I am also preserving my heritage, especially now that batik is recognized as original to Indonesia.

I joined you in 2006. It was my husband who brought our batik to you and, thankfully, you accepted us and even helped us a lot. You've taught me to be really careful in making sure of the quality of my scarves and shawls. You've also taught me to be creative, as you request new designs regularly. And we received a Novica microcredit at zero percent interest so I could expand my workshop. I've worked very hard and today, I own a house and two shops to sell my batik scarves. I even have a car and a motorcycle, and now I can support my children with the best education.

Original Artisan Story

I learned the art of batik when I was very young, since my mother is a batik artist in Java. She has been making batik at home for 23 years, while waiting each day for my father – a fisherman – to come home from the sea. As you can imagine, batik is a part of my life. I started experimenting with the technique when I was 13 years old, with mori textiles. Now I've learned to create different motifs and to work with other materials, such as silk. My mother still helps me a lot.

My mother is my inspiration. She and I still design together, especially the floral and bird motifs that are typical in Pekalongan batik. My husband Rieckey also helps me a lot because he knows what people like abroad, and then I can focus on creating. I would like the batik of Bali to become well known around the world, since its beauty is outstanding.

Cause Badges

Preserving Traditions

Microcredit Financing

Empowering Women

Enabling Education

Caring for Children

67 items by Yuni Kristina

Reviews by Customers

Artist rating

Total reviews

229

Iris

Verified Reviewer

09/29/2020

"Great with Jeans"

I wear this with white, blue and black shirts. A great compliment with summer pants..

Tags By Iris

Silky and soft

Best Uses

Wearing with summer clothing

Purchased Item:

Royal Java Blue, Handmade Silk Batik Scarf from Indonesia

Was This Review Helpful?

Yes (0) No (0)

Elisabeth

Verified Reviewer

09/26/2020

"Very beautiful!"

This is such a beautiful eye catching scarf with vibrant colors and lovely pattern design! It s a stunner!

Best Uses

Dresses up any outfit!

Purchased Item:

Wine Garden, Artisan Crafted Batik Silk Shawl Wrap

Was This Review Helpful?

Yes (0) No (0)

Sidney

Verified Reviewer

09/09/2020

"Christmas Gift"

This was a gift for my sister. She says she is very happy with this shawl.

Purchased Item:

Euphoria, Handcrafted Floral Silk Wrap Shawl

Was This Review Helpful?

Yes (0) No (0)

Ardyth

Verified Reviewer

09/05/2020

"Wonderful to the touch!"

I love to wear this scarf and feel it around my neck or gently covering my arms in a cool room. Very Lovely.

Purchased Item:

Javanese Kingdom, Silk batik shawl

Was This Review Helpful?

Yes (0) No (0)

Ardyth

Verified Reviewer

09/05/2020

"SO LOVELY to feel!"

This scarf is soft and SO NICE to touch. It breaths well and I use it year round.

Purchased Item:

Truntum Majesty, Batik Silk Shawl with Truntum Motifs in Tangerine from Bali

Was This Review Helpful?

Yes (0) No (0)

Kathleen

Verified Reviewer

08/31/2020

"Excellent Quality"

This scarf is one of my favorites. It dresses up everything I wear with it.

Best Uses

It adds just a wonderful refined touch to any outfit

Purchased Item:

Royal Java Blue, Handmade Silk Batik Scarf from Indonesia

Was This Review Helpful?

Yes (0) No (0)

BACK TO TOP

Your NOVICA Packages are Safe and Secure!

NOVICA's response to COVID 19

Every NOVICA item comes with our universal guarantee

Certified clean packing environment

Quality tested and verified by our region teams

Fair trade and 100% happiness guaranteed